Ever wonder why some stories appear in two or three gospels, but in very different forms? Why the changes in wording, and what significance do these changes have?

Robert Price explains how through “redaction criticism” we can explain some of these differences and understand their significance. For example, the author of the gospel of Luke redacted or edited the source material he used, some of it also found in Mark. Luke shaped the source material so his gospel narrative would make the points he thought important. Among the key differences between Mark and Luke is that while the former suggests the Second Coming is imminent, Luke, probably writing later, counsels Christians not to be impatient. The timing of Jesus’ return is unknown and … well, it could be a while. In the meantime, Christians should recognize that references by Mark or others to the Kingdom of God being at hand mean that Christians have undergone an internal transformation, not that JC is on the next bus from paradise.

Redaction criticism is a powerful tool for understanding the theological goals of the various gospel writers.

This episode also has your favorite segments: Listener Questions, Apologetics, the Prophetic Scorecard, and Is That in the Bible? We learn that the relations between Eve and the Serpent in the Garden of Eden may be more complicated than we thought, and we consider the possibility that even contemporaries of the New Testament authors may have thought the whole Jesus thing was just a bunch of cobbled together myths.

Redact your calendar to make room for his informative and entertaining episode!

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